What’s the difference in commute time between the two? If taking the bus adds another 10 minutes to the commute, who cares. But, once you start hitting 30 minutes both ways it starts to suck. Because, that’s on a good day. The longer the commute is the worse things can get.
Honestly, this is hard for me. Because, I like using laundromats. (Even though I never in my life HAD to use one. I guess I just like the idea of reading a book and watching my stuff go round.) Oh. And, Omni mentioned this already. But, there are places in Philly that pick up your clothes, do the laundry, and bring it back and they charge by the pound. Don’t know if they have that service there, but that is an option.
Anyway. I think that commute time is pretty big. Since, it sounds like your tolerance for loud neighborhoods is pretty high.
I’d rather schlep laundry once every couple of weeks or so than have to walk every single day further to the El, twice a day. See if there’s a laundromat near the pub. Wash undies and shirts in the sink. Get a stacked apt. washer-dryer.
Where in Ravenswood is Apt A? If you live close enough to the Metra stop you can take that downtown everyday, which is faster than the L.
I live on the northern end of Lincoln Square, so I’m basically just north of Ravenswood. I’m farther away from the Brown Line than Apt A would be, but it’s really only a short walk or a bus ride if I don’t feel like walking. That being said, unless the nearest laundromat is more than two blocks away, if you really like Irving Park, move there (I don’t really know that neighborhood, so I can’t give my opinion on it). Lincoln Square is a little sleepy, and I do plan on moving south into North Center or Lakeview when my lease is up.
With that said, please check out both places in the evening and maybe even 2 AM. You might find out something that tips the scales one way or another. Talk to the neighbors, too. These are the people who will be walking the floors above and around you. As for the laundry, I would think that $150 a month would easily buy a service, but then I have had my own washer and dryer most of the time since my college daze. Oh, and I don’t live where there is snow and ice. Yech!
It’s just nicer to be able to walk baskets down to the basement in the privacy of my own building than it is to have to go to the strip mall a block away.
Laundry mats suck ass (IMO) but I may consider living with one. If I really hate it so much, I can move when my lease is up. Moving sucks, though, so I’d like to be a happy camper out the gate. I’m still thinking. This may take a while.
I would go with A. If you work in the Loop, there are a lot of transportation options that could get you there (El, bus, Metra).
Although heating not being included gives me slight pause. Make sure the place is insulated properly. We lived in a huge drafty apartment on the North side and our heating bills were ridiculous.
Waitaminute–you’re young and single and you like to go out and you’ll work in the Loop–so why are you looking at apartments in Ravenswood and Irving Park?
ETA: Seems you’d like these places more: the Loop, South Loop, River North, Old Town . . .
I say A. More walking’s not going to kill ya. You like the space, there’s at least a half-decent laundry situation, and a quiet home in an otherwise raucous city is bliss.
I have to confess that I’m prejudiced toward Apt B partly because my favorite apartment that I lived in was there a couple lifetimes ago. I have no current knowledge of the area other than driving through it a bunch of times recently.
Question: In New York you can’t swing a cat without hitting a wash & fold Laundry that picks up your laundry, washes, folds it, and delivers it back, for scarcely more than the cost of doing it in in-building machines. At my old place it would come out to about $2 more per giant, 3week load of laundry AND in addition to folding, they would hang any button down shirts or pants they found on hangers.
Does Chicago not boast this wondrous amenity? Surely it does. In fact I have it on good authority (Yelp) that Mr. Bubbles of Irving Park does a bang-up job of it for 75 cents a pound.
I’ve been in Irving Park for almost 2 years, and I like it quite a bit. I’d been in a much more expensive neighborhood (Roscoe Village) for 6 or 7 years before I moved here. Love being so close to the Blue Line, the neighbors are friendly and I have a ridiculous amount of space for the money I’m paying, compared to Roscoe.
If the laundry thing is your ONLY issue with apartment B, I’d find the closest laundromat (Mr. Bubbles of Irving Park is actually about 12 blocks east, that’s a mile and a half away) and as long as it’s not more than a couple of blocks, it’s probably not too bad. I lived in another place w/o on-site laundry and kind of liked hauling EVERYTHING to the laundromat at once so I could just spend a couple hours on laundry rather than running up and down stairs all day to do one load at a time.
I haven’t noticed Irving Park to be particularly loud - maybe if the apartment is ON Irving or Pulaski, but even then you’ll have more traffic noise than, say, loud drunks yelling outside your window at 2 am.
I don’t drink, but my dogs are regulars at a bar on Pulaski. It seems like a nice enough place, and I’m sure there are other fine places to drink around here - I just don’t pay much attention.
Apartment B, without hesitation, given the description of what you like in an apartment and what you want out of the neighborhood. I can’t see any reason to choose apartment A, except for the laundry, and that’s not a big deal, as you said you got a place a block away. When I lived in an apartment, I kind of preferred going to a laundromat to do my laundry, anyway. They had bigger machines and I could easily do two or three weeks of laundry at one go. It’s not really a big hassle, in my opinion.
As far as the neighborhoods go, my impressions of both is that they are a bit more on the subdued and family-oriented side. Ravenswood, in general, is a bit more upscale than Irving Park, but Irving Park is gentrifying, too. They’re not the typical neighborhoods you’d look at if you want lots of cool martini bars, restaurants, clubs, and things like that. However, if you’re more a neighborhood tavern kind of gal who likes the occasional pocket of cool, these neighborhoods should be up your alley. I personally do like both.
It sounds like you like Apartment A better for the apartment itself and Apartment B better for the neighbourhood it’s in.
On that basis, I’d go with A. I figure you live in your apartment so that’s a matter of absolutes. When you go out, you’re going to travel regardless of whether it’s one block or ten blocks, so that’s a matter of degree.
Plus, speaking from experience, having access to laundry at home is much much better than having to go to the laundromat.
I’m all for in-house laundry (never used the sort needscoffee linked to, but that might be a good option for Apt B), but $150 a month less, plus heat included!? I don’t know what your income is, but that’s a significant amount of change per month, IMHO, and that, to me, is the deal breaker. The difference in cost is surely over $200 every month. You can have a lot of fun with that kind of money, or accumulate some significant savings pretty quickly as well, depending on your style.
Quite, for me too. I don’t even like taking my laundry out of my apartment and down the stairs/across the complex, so I only look for places with w/d inside the unit. Unless you can string up a clothesline and wash your clothes in the bathtub in choice B… heh.
Landromat a block away? That’s not so bad. I lived for years with a landromat a goodly distance away, and it sucked a lot - a block I could handle, so I assume, based on no evidence whatsoever, that you can too.
Remember that laundry is only one of the chores requiring shlepping out of your house - there is also shopping for food and stuff. You lose with B on the laundry but win on the shopping. It’s a wash.
I’d go for the neighbourhood you enjoy. The neighbourhood is gonna set the tone for your whole style of life, particularly if you are single! Go for B.
It’s a few min SW of the Damen brown line by car, not really close to the Metra.
You kids are bringing up some pretty good solutions to my laundry problem. I love yous guys.
That’s me. I’d like a little place nearby that I could drop in for a drink because I’m bored on a Sunday afternoon, nothing fancy. I don’t want to live in an ultra-hip neighborhood like Lakeview, where I’d be the oldest person on the block at 28, but I don’t want to live in a little slice of quiet and cozy either. I don’t want to live around the cool kids, but want to be able to quickly get to their hood when it’s time to fraternize among them.
I think you’re thinking what I’m thinking. You’re good at this exercise.
True. Drinking money!
Ah, that’s what my friend said. It’s true that I would have to do more walking around Apt A, but I’m not sure if it’s a wash, though. Walking around carrying nothing but a handbag is one thing. Bringing loads of laundry around is another. Plus I bicycle a lot, so getting around the neighborhood just to do stuff should be pretty easy on my bicycle. The basket on my bike won’t fit my laundry.
